


Lift the Veil

by Cap_Sweet_And_Salty_Sadness



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Magical Realism, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Car Accident Aftermath, Comfort, Established Relationship, M/M, Near Death Experiences, Tiefling Dorian
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-08
Updated: 2020-02-08
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:55:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,235
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22616734
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cap_Sweet_And_Salty_Sadness/pseuds/Cap_Sweet_And_Salty_Sadness
Summary: Inspired by this prompt: "After a near-death experience, Character A has had a literal veil lifted from their eyes. Now, Character A can see the magical world that has been living within the human world. For example, their regular barista is a troll, their boss is a pixie with electric blue hair, and their significant other…well Character A’s significant other looks a lot like some type of demon."
Relationships: Dorian Pavus/Cullen Rutherford
Comments: 16
Kudos: 88





	Lift the Veil

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Chaotically_Human](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chaotically_Human/gifts).



> This is for my favourite coffee addict chaos maker's birthday! We used a few prompts for this:
> 
> "After a near-death experience, Chracter A has had a literal veil lifted from their eyes. Now, Character A can see the magical world that has been living within the human world. For example, their regular barista is a troll, their boss is a pixie with electric blue hair, and their significant other…well Character A’s significant other looks a lot like some type of demon." from [this list](https://cap-sweet-and-salty-sadness.tumblr.com/post/153084930790/demon-aus)
> 
> ❛❛ I just… I should have been there, I should have been there to stop you from dying, and I wasn’t, and you… you didn’t deserve to die. I’m so sorry. ❜❜ and ❛❛ Shh, stop, don’t be scared. I don’t want to hurt you, I promise. ❜❜ from [this list](https://obscure-sentence-starters.tumblr.com/post/166417673738/being-haunted-by-benevolent-spiritsghosts)
> 
> I tried to make it angst, I swear I did, but I couldn't do it. :'(

Cullen’s head was pounding, like his brain was too big for his skull. His whole body felt numb, almost like he was floating, but he recognised the telltale sounds of an hospital. There was a warm weight in his hand. The warmth was starting to spread throughout his body as it woke up.

“I just… I should have been there, I should have been there to stop you from dying, and I wasn’t, and you… you didn’t deserve to die. I’m so sorry.”

“I’m not dead,” he croaked out, his lids too heavy to lift. He managed to turn his head towards Dorian who let out a small gasp. He tightened his grip on his hand and leaned forward to caress his cheek with his free one. His faint perfume hit Cullen’s nose, soothing. 

“You’re alive, my love, but… do you remember the accident?”

It came to Cullen in waves, memories of his car hit by a van and causing it to spin and flip upside down in the middle of the road. There had been pain and adrenaline, his seatbelt saving his life. Just as he’d reached to free himself, he’d seen the light of another car coming towards him at full speed. There had been nothing to do but brace himself.

“Yeah, I remember. What happened afterward?”

“The ambulance reached you really quickly, but on the way here, your heart stopped for a few minutes.” Dorian let out a dry sob. “They brought you back to life but for a moment I was sure I’d lost you.”

“I don’t remember dying.”

“Which is for the best.”

“Mm. Could I get some water?” Cullen was trying to remain conscious for a little longer but knew it was a losing fight. 

“Of course.” Dorian moved away and quickly returned. “Here. Open your mouth a bit.”

Cullen sipped the cool water. It felt like the best thing he’d ever tasted.

“How are you feeling?” Dorian inquired, carding his fingers through his hair. That also felt nice. 

“Like I’ve been hit by two cars. I think I’ll sleep some more.” Cullen finally managed to lift his lids a bit, for a second. Through a blurry vision, Dorian seemed… different. “Dorian?”

“Yes?”

“Why are you golden?”

And he fell asleep. Over the next days he kept waking up for small bouts, but he mostly slept. His body needed to recover.

About a week later, he woke up and was more lucid. His body felt much better and he was able to easily open his eyes. He was alone in the bright lit room. His back was sore, but it was from being in the same position in a long extend of time rather than pain from the accident. He was hooked to different machines, which he immediately hated for the constrained sensation they gave him.

At least he could reach over and take the glass of water on the bedside without incident. As he drank, someone came in, causing Cullen to almost throw his glass at her. That woman didn’t look human. Her body was impossibly slim and longer than an average human, probably approaching 7 foot, and her skin was light blue and wet-looking, like she was enveloped in a thin layer of water.

“What the fuck?” He let out. 

Her face was also longer, her features lovely but in this instance absolutely revolting to Cullen. She acknowledged his comment with an arched eyebrow, stepping closer, and he realised she was wearing a doctor coat. She was his doctor.

“Is everything alright, Mr. Rutherford?” Her voice was melodious, probably would’ve enchanted Cullen under other circumstances. 

“Am I hallucinating? Why do you look like that?”

She looked down at herself. “What do you mean?” 

“You’re blue and, and… there’s water running over you? Am I high on something right now?”

She made a face of realisation and carefully approached him but remained a few respectful steps away from the bed. 

“Shh, stop, don’t be scared. I don’t want to hurt you, I promise. We’ve kept you on morphine for a while, but now you’re on a very low dosage. What I believe happened, Mr. Rutherford, is you’re finally seeing the world as it’s truly is. All those folklore stories you’ve heard? They’re all true, hidden behind the veil of bland normalcy that was lifted off of you as a result of your near-death experience.”

Cullen tried to take it in stride, he really did, but what else was there to say when told that nothing in your life was true than “What the actual fuck?”

It turned out the doctor, Wynne, was an Undine, a water elemental, hence being blue and covered in water. She explained that most humans would develop this veil to hide the real world. What was more rare was for someone to have it removed, but wasn’t unheard of. There would be a time of adjustment, of course, and no matter the amount of documentation could prepare him to see his friends and family as their true form. 

Wynne had left him some time ago with a book on the magical world and its myriads of magical beings, from fairies and trolls to vampires and werewolves. It was a world superposed to the human one, one a person such as Cullen wouldn’t have even suspected.

One of the nurses was a pixie, a quite endearing woman with bright blue hair. The patient in the next room was a dwarf, a writer with too many stories to tell. Dwarves were common, such as elves and Qunari, tall and broad and sporting beautiful intricate horns. 

Other species had horns. Some also had tails, claws, wings, additional limbs, fur, and so on. This was both frightening and exhilarating, Cullen had to admit once his initial shock had subsided. 

Dorian came to visit late that night, after he finished his shift at the library. Cullen awoke from his light nap when the door opened and closed. 

“Sorry I couldn’t come sooner. There was an emergency at work, otherwise I would’ve left long ago.” He was divesting himself of his coat, back turned to him, and Cullen propped himself on the pillows, unsure of what he was seeing. Yes, this was definitely a tail coming out from underneath Dorian’s jacket, long and slithering around his thigh. It was decorated with golden jewelry complimenting the rich warm hue of his skin. 

So he hadn’t imagined it. When he turned around and stopped at the end of his bed, Cullen stared at him, taking in the other changes in his appearance. There was a golden tinge to his skin that wasn’t there before, his cheekbones were sharper, but the most notable difference was the horns protruding from his forehead and curving over the ears. They were golden and adorned with luminous purple bands and pendants glinting in the dim light.

“I thought you couldn’t be more handsome, but here we are,” Cullen breathed out, completely enamored with his boyfriend.

Dorian, who had been trying to hide his nervosity until now, looked down bashfully, his cheeks taking a red hue. He suddenly was sniffing and stepping around the bed to throw his arms around Cullen, embracing him tightly. Cullen grunted in mild discomfort but hugged him back just as tightly. 

“I love you so, so much,” Dorian muffled in his hospital gown.

Cullen pressed kisses in his hair. “I love you too.”

**Author's Note:**

> Follow me on [Tumblr](http://cap-sweet-and-salty-sadness.tumblr.com/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/CaptainMarianna). I currently take commissions, you can find the infos on my Tumblr.


End file.
